Enhancing alfalfa and sorghum silage quality using agricultural wastes: fermentation dynamics, microbial communities, and functional insights

Abstract At present, there are many researches on the nutritional quality and fermentation quality of forage silage by adding distillers’ grain and fruit residue, but few researches on the succession and function prediction of microbiotic community. In this study, the potential of Moutai distillers&...

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Main Authors: Yuanyuan Zhao, Dianpeng Liu, Yulian Chen, Yao Lei, Maoya Li, Jiachuhan Wang, Xiangjiang He, Yu Yang, Xinyi Zhang, Shengnan Liu, Xiaoqing Zhang, Qiming Cheng, Chao Chen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2025-05-01
Series:BMC Plant Biology
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12870-025-06722-4
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author Yuanyuan Zhao
Dianpeng Liu
Yulian Chen
Yao Lei
Maoya Li
Jiachuhan Wang
Xiangjiang He
Yu Yang
Xinyi Zhang
Shengnan Liu
Xiaoqing Zhang
Qiming Cheng
Chao Chen
author_facet Yuanyuan Zhao
Dianpeng Liu
Yulian Chen
Yao Lei
Maoya Li
Jiachuhan Wang
Xiangjiang He
Yu Yang
Xinyi Zhang
Shengnan Liu
Xiaoqing Zhang
Qiming Cheng
Chao Chen
author_sort Yuanyuan Zhao
collection DOAJ
description Abstract At present, there are many researches on the nutritional quality and fermentation quality of forage silage by adding distillers’ grain and fruit residue, but few researches on the succession and function prediction of microbiotic community. In this study, the potential of Moutai distillers' grain (MDG), Rosa roxburghii pomace (RP) and Lactobacillus acidophilus (LAB) to improve silage quality during anaerobic storage of alfalfa and sorghum was investigated. Harvested alfalfa and sorghum were ensiled without (CK) or with MDG, RP, LAB, LAB + MDG or LAB + RP for 45 days at 21–25 °C. Compared with the uninoculated control, alfalfa silage inoculated with LAB + MDG presented better nutrient retention, where the lactic acid (LA) content was increased by 84.62% and the ammonia nitrogen (AN) content was reduced by 38.52%. Similarly, in sorghum silage, both inoculation with LAB + MDG and inoculation with LAB + RP effectively increased nutrient retention, increased the LA content and reduced the AN content. The proportion of Lactobacillus increased in sorghum and alfalfa silage after 45 days of fermentation. Inoculation of alfalfa and sorghum with RP or LAB + MDG significantly increased the relative abundance of lactic acid bacteria in silage, especially Lactobacillus plantarum, which was the main dominant strain. The addition of MDG to the feeds not only effectively retained the crude protein (CP) content of the feeds for better retention of their nutritional value but also significantly reduced the contents of neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and acid detergent fiber (ADF), which improved the digestibility and utilization of the feeds. In addition, the addition of MDG further promoted the proliferation of Lactobacillus and increased their abundance in the silage, thus contributing to the improvement of fermentation quality and preservation of silage. In summary, MDG, LAB + MDG, and RP + LAB resulted in higher-quality silage, but the addition of MDG was more cost effective and therefore is recommended for application in production.
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spelling doaj-art-da9749df1f9a4b31a5f39539062d7f632025-08-20T02:37:59ZengBMCBMC Plant Biology1471-22292025-05-0125111610.1186/s12870-025-06722-4Enhancing alfalfa and sorghum silage quality using agricultural wastes: fermentation dynamics, microbial communities, and functional insightsYuanyuan Zhao0Dianpeng Liu1Yulian Chen2Yao Lei3Maoya Li4Jiachuhan Wang5Xiangjiang He6Yu Yang7Xinyi Zhang8Shengnan Liu9Xiaoqing Zhang10Qiming Cheng11Chao Chen12College of Animal Science, Guizhou UniversityTongliao Academy of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry SciencesCollege of Animal Science, Guizhou UniversityCollege of Animal Science, Guizhou UniversityCollege of Animal Science, Guizhou UniversityCollege of Animal Science, Guizhou UniversityCollege of Animal Science, Guizhou UniversityCollege of Animal Science, Guizhou UniversityCollege of Animal Science, Guizhou UniversityInner Mongolia Forestry and Grassland Monitoring and Planning InstituteGrassland Research of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural SciencesCollege of Animal Science, Guizhou UniversityCollege of Animal Science, Guizhou UniversityAbstract At present, there are many researches on the nutritional quality and fermentation quality of forage silage by adding distillers’ grain and fruit residue, but few researches on the succession and function prediction of microbiotic community. In this study, the potential of Moutai distillers' grain (MDG), Rosa roxburghii pomace (RP) and Lactobacillus acidophilus (LAB) to improve silage quality during anaerobic storage of alfalfa and sorghum was investigated. Harvested alfalfa and sorghum were ensiled without (CK) or with MDG, RP, LAB, LAB + MDG or LAB + RP for 45 days at 21–25 °C. Compared with the uninoculated control, alfalfa silage inoculated with LAB + MDG presented better nutrient retention, where the lactic acid (LA) content was increased by 84.62% and the ammonia nitrogen (AN) content was reduced by 38.52%. Similarly, in sorghum silage, both inoculation with LAB + MDG and inoculation with LAB + RP effectively increased nutrient retention, increased the LA content and reduced the AN content. The proportion of Lactobacillus increased in sorghum and alfalfa silage after 45 days of fermentation. Inoculation of alfalfa and sorghum with RP or LAB + MDG significantly increased the relative abundance of lactic acid bacteria in silage, especially Lactobacillus plantarum, which was the main dominant strain. The addition of MDG to the feeds not only effectively retained the crude protein (CP) content of the feeds for better retention of their nutritional value but also significantly reduced the contents of neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and acid detergent fiber (ADF), which improved the digestibility and utilization of the feeds. In addition, the addition of MDG further promoted the proliferation of Lactobacillus and increased their abundance in the silage, thus contributing to the improvement of fermentation quality and preservation of silage. In summary, MDG, LAB + MDG, and RP + LAB resulted in higher-quality silage, but the addition of MDG was more cost effective and therefore is recommended for application in production.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12870-025-06722-4Lactobacillus acidophilusRosa roxburghii pomaceAlfalfaBacterial communityMoutai distillers' grainSorghum
spellingShingle Yuanyuan Zhao
Dianpeng Liu
Yulian Chen
Yao Lei
Maoya Li
Jiachuhan Wang
Xiangjiang He
Yu Yang
Xinyi Zhang
Shengnan Liu
Xiaoqing Zhang
Qiming Cheng
Chao Chen
Enhancing alfalfa and sorghum silage quality using agricultural wastes: fermentation dynamics, microbial communities, and functional insights
BMC Plant Biology
Lactobacillus acidophilus
Rosa roxburghii pomace
Alfalfa
Bacterial community
Moutai distillers' grain
Sorghum
title Enhancing alfalfa and sorghum silage quality using agricultural wastes: fermentation dynamics, microbial communities, and functional insights
title_full Enhancing alfalfa and sorghum silage quality using agricultural wastes: fermentation dynamics, microbial communities, and functional insights
title_fullStr Enhancing alfalfa and sorghum silage quality using agricultural wastes: fermentation dynamics, microbial communities, and functional insights
title_full_unstemmed Enhancing alfalfa and sorghum silage quality using agricultural wastes: fermentation dynamics, microbial communities, and functional insights
title_short Enhancing alfalfa and sorghum silage quality using agricultural wastes: fermentation dynamics, microbial communities, and functional insights
title_sort enhancing alfalfa and sorghum silage quality using agricultural wastes fermentation dynamics microbial communities and functional insights
topic Lactobacillus acidophilus
Rosa roxburghii pomace
Alfalfa
Bacterial community
Moutai distillers' grain
Sorghum
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s12870-025-06722-4
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